Karen laughed.
“Probably thirty dollars.”
“Interesting.”
“What?”
“You're very confident about things you haven't verified.”
Karen's smile disappeared.
David interrupted.
“Enough.”
Marcus looked at him.
“You're right.”
David seemed surprised.
Marcus continued.
“This has gone far enough.”
He raised his phone.
“I'd like security to arrive.”
Michelle frowned.
“Why?”
“So they can witness what happens next.”
David keyed his radio again.
“Security ETA?”
“Two minutes.”
Karen smiled.
“Finally.”
Amy's livestream passed 10,000 viewers.
Comments raced across her screen.
Call the police.
Someone help him.
This is insane.
Why don't they scan the ticket?
The businessman in 2C stood slightly.
“Can I see the ticket?”
Marcus handed it to him.
The man examined it.
Then his eyebrows rose.
“It's definitely 1A.”
David reached for it.
“I don't need your help.”
The businessman looked at him.
“Apparently you do.”
Several passengers laughed nervously.
Sarah's face reddened.
“This is becoming disruptive.”
Marcus nodded.
“Yes.”
He looked toward Karen.
“And all of this started because someone decided I didn't belong here.”
Karen scoffed.
“Don't twist this around.”
“I haven't twisted anything.”
“You know exactly what you're doing.”
Marcus smiled faintly.
“What am I doing?”
Karen hesitated.
“You're trying to embarrass me.”
“No.”
He looked around the cabin.
“I'm letting you speak.”
That sentence silenced her.
Marcus checked his phone.
The airline application had finished loading.
But he didn't reveal the screen yet.
Not yet.
He wanted one more question answered.
He turned to Sarah.
“If I were wearing a suit, would you have checked my ticket?”
Sarah froze.
“That has nothing to do with it.”
“If I were white?”
A murmur moved through the cabin.
Sarah's face tightened.
“This is inappropriate.”
“If I were white,” Marcus repeated, “would you have questioned the ticket?”
She didn't answer.
Marcus nodded.
“That tells me everything.”
The sound of approaching footsteps came from the jet bridge.
Security had arrived.
The Man Nobody Saw
Two security officers entered the aircraft.
Officer Daniel Williams was in his forties.
His partner, Officer Lisa Carter, was younger and carried herself with quiet confidence.
Williams looked at David.
“What seems to be the issue?”
David immediately stepped forward.
“This passenger refuses to comply with crew instructions.”
Williams looked at Marcus.
“Sir?”
Marcus said nothing.
He simply handed him the boarding pass.
Williams examined it.
Then looked at the seat.
Then at Karen.
His eyebrows rose.
“This says 1A.”
David spoke quickly.
“It's a fraudulent boarding pass.”
Williams looked at him.
“Have you verified that?”
David hesitated.
“Well—”
“No?”
David swallowed.
“No.”
Officer Carter took the boarding pass.
She studied it more carefully.
“This appears legitimate.”
Sarah stepped in.
“Officer, we've had this passenger disrupting boarding.”
Carter looked at her.
“Why?”
“He refused to move.”
“Why?”
“Because he claims this is his seat.”
“It says it is.”
Karen stood.
“I can explain.”
Officer Williams turned toward her.
“Please do.”
Karen pulled up her airline application.
“My boarding pass also says 1A.”
Williams looked at the phone.
Then Marcus's paper.
“Two people have 1A?”
Karen nodded.
“Exactly.”
Marcus remained silent.
Officer Carter looked at David.
“Could the system have issued a duplicate?”
David shook his head.
“Impossible.”
“Then someone needs to check the reservation system.”
David reached for his radio.
“We can do that.”
Marcus finally spoke.
“You could have done that ten minutes ago.”
David looked away.
Officer Carter noticed.
Something about Marcus's calmness bothered her.
Not because he was aggressive.
Because he wasn't.
Most people being surrounded by four crew members and threatened with police intervention would be angry.
Marcus looked like a man waiting for a meeting to start.
Officer Williams handed back the boarding pass.
“Sir, may I see your identification?”
Marcus nodded.
He reached into his pocket.
Karen watched.
Several passengers leaned forward.
Marcus removed his phone.
He unlocked it.
“Actually,” he said, “I think identification can wait.”
Williams frowned.
“Sir?”
“There is something you should see.”
Marcus opened the airline application.
The ordinary passenger interface disappeared.
A secure login screen appeared.
Then another.
Then another.
Officer Carter leaned closer.
The screen displayed a corporate dashboard.
At the top was a name.
MARCUS WASHINGTON.
Below it:
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
FOUNDER
MAJORITY SHAREHOLDER
EXECUTIVE AUTHORITY: FULL
EMPLOYEE ID: 0000001
Officer Carter stopped breathing for a moment.
She looked at Marcus.
Then at the screen.
Then back at Marcus.
Officer Williams leaned over.
His eyes widened.
David noticed their expressions.
“What is it?”
Nobody answered.
David stepped closer.
Marcus turned the phone toward him.
David read the screen.
His face changed.
The confidence disappeared.
His clipboard slipped from his hand.
It hit the floor.
Clack.
Sarah looked down.
Then up.
“What?”
David couldn't speak.
James stepped forward.
“What's wrong?”
David pointed weakly toward the phone.
James read it.
His face went pale.
Michelle moved closer.
She read the screen.
Her arms dropped to her sides.
Karen remained seated.
She looked around.
“Why is everyone acting so strange?”
Marcus turned the phone toward her.
Karen stared.
Her eyes moved across the screen.
Her lips parted.
“No.”
Marcus said nothing.
“No.”
She stood slowly.
“You…”
Marcus looked at her.
“Yes?”
“You can't be him.”
“Who?”
Karen's voice shook.
“Marcus Washington.”
“Yes.”
The cabin went silent.
Someone whispered.
“That's the CEO.”
Amy's phone nearly slipped from her hand.
She looked at her livestream.
89,000 viewers.
Then at Marcus.
Then at Karen.
Then back at the screen.
“Oh my God.”
Marcus finally looked toward the cabin.
“My name is Marcus Washington.”
He paused.